Chapter 88: Difficult Choice

In addition to the three teammates from his club, Kaka also had many acquaintances in the national team, and most of them had met in person, even if they weren't familiar with each other.

After all, almost everyone in the same league had played against each other and knew each other's strengths to a certain extent.

This made it much easier for Kaka to gain a foothold in this team. At least there wouldn't be the messy situation like the last time he played against Bolivia.

Although Kaka was still the youngest in the team, no one really dared to treat him like a younger brother. Sao Paulo's quadruple crown last year and this year's rapid progress were all accomplished by stepping on them. In a competition that respects strength, Kaka was fully qualified to make his voice heard in this team.

Of course, everyone knew that out of this team of twenty-three people, only four or five would be able to participate in the World Cup. The competition would be terrifying.

They were both teammates and opponents, and no one would give up easily.

Scolari's Brazilian team mainly played 4-5-1 or 5-2-2-1. The former had four defenders, two midfielders, and three attacking midfielders, while the latter had two midfielders and two attacking midfielders.

In the attacking midfield position, Ronaldinho and Rivaldo's positions were almost untouchable. If it was to play 4-5-1, then Juninho would replace a defender, so it could be simply considered that Ronaldinho, Rivaldo, and Juninho were Brazil's starting three attacking midfielders.

Neither Rivaldo nor Ronaldinho came. Only Juninho participated in this training camp. He was a true veteran midfielder. He made his debut in 1993 and not only dominated many clubs in Brazil, but also joined Atletico Madrid and Middlesbrough before joining Vasco da Gama. It was almost impossible for Kaka to replace him as the starter. Whether he could even be his substitute depended on Scolari's mood.

In training matches, Scolari set up Juninho and Kaka as a frontcourt dual-core many times, which in itself had sent some signals. If Kaka could show a performance that impressed Scolari, then he might actually have a place in the World Cup in South Korea and Japan and in the twenty-three-man squad.

In addition to Luison, Kaka's national youth teammate Oliveira was also on the front line.

Oliveira originally thought he was there to make soy sauce, but the moment he saw Kaka, a small flame of hope began to quietly burn in his heart.

However, on March 7, he could only sit on the bench and watch with envy as Kaka appeared in the starting lineup to represent Brazil against Iceland.

The current Icelandic team was not the Vikings that would amaze the world in the future, but a veritable fish belly. The only person in the entire team who could be named was Gudjohnsen.

On the Brazilian side, Luison was the lone forward, Kaka and Juninho were the two attacking midfielders, Gilberto Silva, Ricardinho, and Kleberson were the three defensive midfielders, and then there were four defenders and the goalkeeper, Dida.

From the beginning of the game, Brazil showed the momentum to turn the friendly match into a friendly match.

Kaka passed the ball back, and Kleberson immediately rushed forward after receiving the ball.

Scolari frowned slightly on the sidelines.

In his football philosophy, defense was a crucial part. The reason why he preferred to add a defensive midfielder as long as there was a forward was to enhance the defensive thickness. Although Kleberson also shouldered certain offensive tasks, Scolari preferred that he do it by passing the ball rather than dribbling like a winger.

However, although the coach was not satisfied, the effect of Kleberson's breakthrough was not bad. After all, he was a figure who would be favored by Sir Alex Ferguson and introduced as Keane's successor. Although he was labeled as a parallel import in the end, he still had real skill on the ball.

He passed two people with a realistic feint and was forced to pass the ball to Juninho after being mobbed.

Juninho did not stick to the ball but passed the ball directly to Kaka. Unfortunately, the pass was too obvious and was seen through by the Icelandic backcourt players and intercepted.

Iceland's attack.

They left only Gudjohnsen as a forward in the frontcourt.

The best football player in Icelandic history is affectionately called "Skate" by fans, not only because that is the homophone of Iceland, but also because he is as calm as ice in front of the goal and his shot is as deadly as a knife.

Unfortunately, the skate was frozen by Gilberto Silva from the very beginning. His teammate's pass was intercepted as soon as it found him, and he kicked the ball out of the sideline during the counterattack.

Ricardinho quickly sent the sideline ball out.

Kaka leaned on the defender, knocked the ball back to Ricardinho, then turned and ran towards the frontcourt.

Ricardinho passed the ball diagonally to the middle. After receiving the ball, Juninho directly lobbed the ball in front of Kaka.

Kaka ran without the ball and threw away the defender's defense, caught up with the football, and then ran towards the goal with a slight move.

He had deliberately reduced the explosive route in the game now and would only use the striding star when the perfect counterattack opportunity arose. This was probably one of the reasons why he had so few physical injuries now compared to the same period in his previous life.

But this game was very important. For others, it may have been just a friendly match, but for many people, it was a trial match. You must know that Brazilian football is full of talents. Kaka was now only the best midfielder in the Brazilian league, just one of them. Although with previous history as a reference, he should be able to occupy a World Cup quota, but the quota was not obtained out of thin air. Before everything was settled, he had to fight with all his strength.

Therefore, Kaka not only had to be in his best condition but also had to come up with the most powerful tricks. If the honor points were not too precious, he would even want to buy a star card or exchange it for a "Lightning Raid," "Earth-shattering," and the like offensive skills.

As soon as he made his stride, he had Kaka's seven or eight successes at the peak of Milan. Even the top defenders in the world were helpless, let alone the defenders in Iceland who may not even be in the silver rank.

Starting from the midfield, he drove straight in, quickly dodged the ball, and shot furiously from the penalty area line.

The football did not fly straight to the center of the goal like an ordinary heavy artillery bombardment but drew an exaggerated arc and rushed into the dead center on the upper right side of the goal.

1:0.

"The Brazilian team scored on the first shot. Kaka continued his form in Sao Paulo. This is his trademark long-distance running and long-range shooting. Like a flame, he not only ignited the enthusiasm of the fans; it also melted the iceberg in Iceland."

Although Kaka felt good about himself, he didn't expect that the attack would go so smoothly. He couldn't help but run to the sidelines and point his hands to the sky.

The game was held in Brazil, and the stadium, which could accommodate more than 30,000 people, was packed to the brim. There were endless shouts of "Kaka" in the stands, mixed with the screams of many women.

Scolari knew that Kaka dribbled the ball very quickly and was very popular, but he didn't expect that his dribbling speed and popularity could be exaggerated to this extent. The scale in his mind couldn't help but tilt a little towards Kaka.

But giving up Djalminha and choosing a young man who had just played professionally for a year... This kind of determination was difficult to make.

(End of chapter)